Japanese Language

His grandfather was a forced laborer in Japan's coal mines, but college student Lee Soo Hyun came from South Korea to Tokyo voluntarily to study Japanese and build bridges between the two countries. Over the weekend, the 26-year-old Lee died a hero to both nations. He and another good Samaritan, a Japanese photographer, were hit by a train Friday night as they tried to rescue an apparently drunk man who had fallen onto the tracks.

It's tough to be Japan these days. China is bigger, with an economy that surpassed Japan's two years ago. South Korea is more hip, with addicting soap operas and "Gangnam Style" cool. But Japan has what neither East Asian country does: the "Iron Chef" cooking show, a campy cult sensation that has spawned knockoffs in America, Israel, Australia, Britain, Thailand and elsewhere. The show's most celebrated chef, Hiroyuki Sakai, made his first appearance in Los Angeles this month to raise money for educational programs that backers hope will boost Japan's public profile among youth.

After 16 years in Japan, American executive David D. Baskerville speaks the language so naturally that Japanese phrases creep into his English conversation. For the Japanese, however, there is still something unnatural about Japanese-speaking foreigners. "The reaction of bikkuri (surprise) is always there," Baskerville says. "In America, the reaction (to foreigners) is, 'Why don't you speak English?' In Japan, it's the opposite: 'Why in the world do you speak Japanese?'

The five-star view will remain the same, but lots of other changes are planned for Hotel Chinzanso Tokyo when it officially changes its name Jan. 1. The hotel has operated as the Four Seasons Hotel Tokyo at Chinzanso for the last 20 years. Fujita Kanko, the property's owner, is investing $90 million to renovate Hotel Chinzanso Tokyo, which is known for its 16-acre Japanese botanical garden. Chinzanso means “villa on a mountain of camellias.” Among the upgrades are a new rooftop, meeting and event space, and Cafe Foresta, an open-kitchen-style restaurant specializing in sweets. "We possess a truly unique property, an urban resort in a lush garden setting," said Kouichi Urashima, the new general manager and a veteran hotelier.

"Hajimemashite, dozo yoroshiku," William Adams enunciates for his introductory Japanese language class at Roosevelt High School on Los Angeles' Eastside. "That basically means, what's up," he says, eliciting laughs from the room of freshmen and sophomores. Then he gives a somewhat philosophical translation, explaining that Japanese culture is very formal: "Let's begin a new friendship." Adams asks the students to repeat the phrase. Hands on hips, he listens.

Ask high school students why they are studying Japanese instead of less difficult foreign languages and the answer often is about economics. "In the future, I know Japanese will be the language of money. Maybe I can get a couple of bucks learning it. Maybe it will be easier finding a job," said Omar Miramontes, a 10-grader at Bell High School, an overwhelmingly Latino school in the industrial city south of Los Angeles.

Honolulu Paper Plans Japanese Edition: The Honolulu Star-Bulletin announced plans for a Japanese-language business edition of the newspaper that will be distributed to subscribers by facsimile. A three-page summary, which will be called Facts Hawaii, will be distributed each afternoon, Monday through Friday, the company said. Richard Hartnett, president and chief executive of the Star-Bulletin's owner, Gannett Pacific Corp.

The five-star view will remain the same, but lots of other changes are planned for Hotel Chinzanso Tokyo when it officially changes its name Jan. 1. The hotel has operated as the Four Seasons Hotel Tokyo at Chinzanso for the last 20 years. Fujita Kanko, the property's owner, is investing $90 million to renovate Hotel Chinzanso Tokyo, which is known for its 16-acre Japanese botanical garden. Chinzanso means “villa on a mountain of camellias.” Among the upgrades are a new rooftop, meeting and event space, and Cafe Foresta, an open-kitchen-style restaurant specializing in sweets. "We possess a truly unique property, an urban resort in a lush garden setting," said Kouichi Urashima, the new general manager and a veteran hotelier.

The Japan Foundation has awarded a $127,880 grant to Caltech to fund Japanese language classes for three years beginning this fall. Classes in beginning, intermediate and technical Japanese will be taught by Kayoko Hirata, an expert in computer-assisted language teaching.

Amid tatami mats and rice paper screens, one of Japan's most celebrated new writers lives in a weathered building of prewar wood. Calligraphy scrolls adorn the three-room flat. Hardcover collections of the novelists Ogai Mori and Riichi Yokomitsu fill wooden bookshelves. Sheafs of paper covered with handscrawled Chinese characters are scattered across two writing tables. Like his apartment, the writer's literary style is orthodox Japanese. But Ian Hideo Levy is blue-eyed and Berkeley-born.

September 28, 2003 | Frank Gibney, Frank Gibney, professor of politics at Pomona College, is president of the Pacific Basin Institute and author of "The Pacific Century" and other works on Asia.

When my children used to ask me, "What did you do in the war, Daddy?" my answer was terse and occupationally disappointing: "I spoke Japanese." No daring fighter pilot. No inspiring platoon leader. No crack submarine commander. Still, I did a lot in World War II. As a Navy intelligence officer, I interrogated Japanese prisoners of war. I elicited much military information, both tactical and strategic, and translated it.

"Hajimemashite, dozo yoroshiku," William Adams enunciates for his introductory Japanese language class at Roosevelt High School on Los Angeles' Eastside. "That basically means, what's up," he says, eliciting laughs from the room of freshmen and sophomores. Then he gives a somewhat philosophical translation, explaining that Japanese culture is very formal: "Let's begin a new friendship." Adams asks the students to repeat the phrase. Hands on hips, he listens.

His grandfather was a forced laborer in Japan's coal mines, but college student Lee Soo Hyun came from South Korea to Tokyo voluntarily to study Japanese and build bridges between the two countries. Over the weekend, the 26-year-old Lee died a hero to both nations. He and another good Samaritan, a Japanese photographer, were hit by a train Friday night as they tried to rescue an apparently drunk man who had fallen onto the tracks.

When Japanese fighters bombed Pearl Harbor in 1941, propelling America into war against Japan, the U.S. Navy was caught flat-footed in more ways than one. Only 12 officers in the entire ranks were fluent in Japanese. The Japanese Issei (first generation) immigrants and their American Nisei offspring who understood the language were about to be rounded up into internment camps.

Learning a new language can open your mind to novel ways of experiencing the world. The Inuit tribe's multiple words for snow give insight not only into their environment but also into their culture. Explore cultures from around the globe by getting acquainted with languages through these direct links on The Times Launch Point Web site: http://www.latimes.com/launchpoint/ Here are the best sites for getting your schoolwork done or for just having fun.

When 83-year-old Barry Tamura attended the San Fernando Valley Japanese Language Institute in the 1920s, Japanese American farmers and flower growers were scattered across the northeast Valley. Most of his 79 classmates in 1924--the year the school was founded--were nisei, or second-generation Japanese Americans, who spoke Japanese at home and attended the school mainly to master kanji--the complex writing system of their forebears.

Montebello Regional Public Library, 1550 W. Beverly Blvd., will receive a collection of children's books valued at $2,000 from the Kumon Educational Institute, the largest private educational institute in the world. The donation of books will coincide with the visit of Takeshi Kumon, president of the institute, on Tuesday. The classic titles in the Japanese language are selections from the Japanese Library Assn. reading list.

After learning the fundamentals of the Japanese language, Soka University of America students will have the opportunity to try out their skills in the college's new advanced conversational Japanese language class to be offered in the fall. The noncredit course, to be offered on Monday nights, will focus on discussions of various topics, including current events, culture and art. Students and their instructor, Kyoko Akipaya, will speak only Japanese during the two-hour class.

Yoshiko Yamaguchi, our sensei, or teacher, carefully clipped a small microphone to her collar so the students in the back could hear her. "Konbanwa. O-genki desu ka?" she asked with a big smile. (Good evening. How are you?) "Genki desu," we answered in unison. (We're fine.) Later, when the class got a bit too rambunctious, Yamaguchi became serious: "Once you come in, speak only in Japanese. Otherwise be quiet." Speak only Japanese?

* A Japanese culture and language school will be held from 9 a.m. to noon today in the social hall at the Oxnard Buddhist Temple. At 11 a.m., Japanese language school teachers and parents meet. At 4 p.m., Ho'onn-ko, the 738th memorial service for Shinran Shonin, will be held, combined with the January shotsuki memorial service. New officers will be installed, and the Rev. Tetsuo Unno will be the guest speaker. On Sunday at 10 a.m., the Rev.